Univ. of Dayton Sprint Tri, Bonus Race Report

So I had signed up for this race a couple weeks ago, just a short sprint the Sunday following my last A race of the season.  I mostly signed up to donate money to the tri club, and was thinking it was about 50/50 odds that I’d actually be up for racing.  I have taken this entire week off of workouts, but still decided it might be fun, and I wanted to get back up to UD to see what’s new on campus.  Anyways, the race had two separate races, the MCWTC (or something similar) which is basically the college tri teams division, and the open division.  This being the inaugural year, there were only about 40-50 participants per race.

The swim was a 500yd pool swim done on rolling starts.  This means I got to do the whole swim in one lane shared with only one other swimmer.  It was nice to be able to just swim freely.  After the HIM’s 500yd came quickly, and transition was just out the door so I was off on the bike before too long.

The bike was a 12.4 mile route, mostly along the Great Miami river.  I thought my legs just weren’t going to show up to play at first, but once I turned realized it was just a headwind.  I didn’t feel great on the bike, probably the lack of workouts this week and no real warmup pre-race.  Either way, I got back into T2 in about 33.5 minutes (haven’t seen official) and was quickly out on the run.

The run was a winding 5k all through campus including climbing the one substantial hill to the freshman Stuart dorm in the first half-mile and again in the last half mile.  I was hurting at the tops of the hill climbs, but was able to recover on the downhills.  I felt like I was moving pretty quick, but have no idea of the time. 

Overall, my finish was 1:03 and some change, which was good enough for 1st place in the open division, 5th fastest OA time of the day if you include the college race.  So, technically I got my first OA race win, which is pretty cool even if it' wasn’t loaded with competition…either way, a fun bonus race.

Augusta 70.3 Race Report

The official 2009 racing season came to a close for me this past weekend at my final A race, Augusta 70.3. I’m not sure the race itself could have gone much better, which is nice because I feel like I’ve earned some unstructured time off. This will probably get old in a week or so, but comes at a good time since work and school are busy at the moment. Anyways, to the race report.

The wife and I left for Georgia Friday afternoon hoping to get most of the way from Cincinnati before 10pm so we could get a good nights’ sleep. We made really good time and ended up stopping in Newbury, SC Friday night for a late dinner and sleep. I would not have stopped here on my own, but my parents and sister who were ahead of us were there already, so we just met them. Saturday AM, we continued down to Augusta and headed straight to packet pickup/check in/mandatory meeting, etc… I was a little concerned about 1) How well they, in their first year, would handle the 3000+ entrants, and 2) Having to attend the pre-race meeting to be able to check in.

As a whole, things went smoothly considering. We were able to attend a meeting around 11 and check in went quickly after that, including bike drop off even though it was about a mile and a half away down the river. After doing all the required activities, we headed for lunch and to the hotel to relax. A few hours of college football later and it was dinner time then bed.

Race Day

My dad, sister and I were all up and out the door by 5:30AM. We had to head to park near the swim start (race finish was nearby), then take a shuttle to transition to setup our areas, then shuttle back to swim start to pick up timing chips and start the race. We all had later starting times (~1hr after the pros), so never felt rushed with having to change locations and catch multiple shuttles. We hung out and watched the pros and early AG waves while letting the nerves build, but before long the M18-24 AG was on deck, so off I went.

Swim

The swim was a straight shot downriver swim with a strong current. The water was seemingly clean of pollution, but did have some plant life near the surface or floating in areas. The water was perfect, right around 70 degrees. However, you would have thought we were taking the polar bear plunge by the reaction of all the Georgia, Florida, Alabama, etc competitors from the deeper south in my AG. I had to laugh a little at the wimpyness, but I guess it’s all relative to what you’re used to. Anyways, the horn sounded and off we went. I managed to find open space early, even though I was near the middle of the pack. I was able to sight well to both sides and had a great start. I could already tell this was going to be a fast swim. We passed under 2 bridges I used as checkpoints, but then I started to lose my ability to swim straight as my goggles started fogging up. After not too long, I knew I had to be close to the finish, but couldn’t tell where I was. I noticed a large restaurant on the Augusta side shore I had seen yesterday at bike check in and used it to guide me home. Up the ramp and into T1…

Swim Time: 28:21

T1

It was a longer run since we had to wrap around the transition area, but I felt pretty efficient here. Time: 3:39

Bike

Heading out on the bike

I really enjoyed the bike course here. We took off with a tailwind and I settled into my comfort zone pretty quickly. The course crosses into South Carolina almost immediately and stays there until the last mile. It was pretty flat for the first 15 miles or so, and then was a series of rollers, mostly at shallow grade for the next 15-20. The last 15-20 miles was mostly flat to downhill, but into a headwind for the majority. The first section I went pretty quickly with it being flatter with a tailwind, so set a good pace out of the gate. In the middle, I just tried to not burn too many matches on the uphill rollers and really focused on nailing my nutrition plan. The last leg, my back was getting a little sore, but I tried to stay tucked as much as possible to minimize the effects of the wind. As I made it back to transition, my legs felt worn, but definitely not worse than they had at Steelhead, so I felt like a strong run was a good possibility.

Time: 2:36:02 (21.53mph avg)

T2

I came to the bike dismount a little fast and nearly took a tumble when I dismounted, but otherwise very smooth. Grabbed my hat, fuel belt, and # belt and off I went. Time: 1:48

Run

Heading up Broad St on the Run

The run course takes you from transition into downtown, and then basically runs up and down parallel streets in 2 loops. It’s not the most creative course in the world, but it’s flat, spectator friendly, and easy to support from an aid station perspective. My legs settled into a decent pace almost immediately. It was a little slower than my goal pace, but I like to ease into the run so I was pleased with it. 2 or 3 guys from my AG passed me in the first 2 miles. I wasn’t racing for a Clearwater spot by any means, but I do like to compete, so I sized them up and decided I’d let them go while keeping an eye on them. I got into a groove and knocked out the first 6 miles without too much difficulty. During this first loop, I was able to see my mom and wife twice, which was also nice. As I hit the split for loop 2, I caught a glimpse of the finish line clock. I started to do some calculating since I really wasn’t sure what I was on pace for to that point. It seemed like I was on pace for my goal time with a pretty solid cushion. That gave me a mental boost that lasted a mile or so, but then I started to wear out. I kept telling myself to be humble, I could hit my goal with 9minute miles the rest of the way in. This was not to convince me to slow down, but basically to not try and speed up and risk blowing up. I met a young lady on her first loop doing a similar pace to me, so we talked for a couple miles to pass the time…a good distraction and my pace did actually come up a bit here. She was too fresh for me to stay with her much longer, so I let her go at about mile 9 and got back into a comfortable pace for the final push. My right quad wanted to twitch a bit toward the end, but I knew I had a big PR, so didn’t let it bother me. As I turned into the finish chute, I didn’t throw in any kick…I just basically smiled at took in the finish. When I stopped I finally realized how tired I really was…and that it was hot, but I was done so all was good

Time: 1:38:33 (7:31/mile pace)

Overall Time: 4:48:23 (12/115 in AG, 199 OA)

I obviously wouldn’t have been sub 4:50 w/o the big current on the swim, but am confident I would have broken 5hrs, which was my goal. My dad came in under 6 hours, a 20 minute PR for him, and my sister finished with not her best time, but it was a gutsy performance considering she had a chest cold going in and had some trouble breathing on the swim. It was a fun race and the locals seemed to take to it well. There were plenty of people out in lawn chairs cheering the bikers on and the run course was loaded with spectators. For a first year event, they did a great job. Now it’s onto the off-season and planning next season’s race schedule.

A successful day completed

Tri for Sight 2009 Race Report

This past Sunday AM, I raced a last minute sprint tri, as did my wife. We were actually planning on her racing and me supporting, but she decided she’d rather me race as well and I’m not one to argue with that. Although it was a sprint tri while I’m focusing on 70.3’s this season, it fell at a perfect time to be able to fit into the schedule. This race, the Tri-for-Sight, in Lexington, KY is 2 weeks prior to Augusta 70.3 (my next A race). I am doing a 1.5 week taper, so some threshold work (the race itself) along with a long bike the day before this weekend’s race provided a solid last build weekend pre-taper. Oh yeah, and racing is fun.

A little background on the event...The Tri-for-Sight is a sprint tri with an 800m pool swim in Univ. of Kentucky’s natatorium, an 18.6 mile rolling hill bike ride through city and horse farms, and a 4 mile run near the football stadium (including 2 miles in the arboretum). This is probably my favorite sprint tri I’ve done for a variety of reasons. For one, it’s nearby to Louisville and Cincinnati so has always been easy to get to. Second, it’s the first tri I ever did 6 years ago (and this year was the 5th time I’ve been back). Third, other than the swim…the course is top notch as far as scenery and providing some challenging terrain, but well kept roads. Finally, the post race food selection and door prizes are usually awesome and this year was no exception.

With the races continued success, they have grown increasing the field size to near 400 tri competitors (including relay teams) and adding a duathlon. Unfortunately, the logistics of increasing the field in a pool swim race led to some serious congestion this year, but we’ll get to that.

Race Morning: Up at 5, at the course by 6, ready to go by 6:45…all pretty smooth. My wife and I set up our areas, then inspected each others to provide some piece of mind, then went out to talk with my parents before heading to the pool. I also downed my espresso GU about 30 minutes before starting.

Swim: I lined up to swim based on my number (numbers were given based on projected swim time, fastest to slowest)…I was 173, so stepped in line between 172 and…473? Obviously, this 473 fellow was in the wrong place, right…wrong. Apparently 473 was actually supposed to be 173, but since we had similar names I received his registration info. I was actually supposed to be in the 220s, which makes more sense with my lack of swimming skills. Luckily the RD had fixed the mistake already and I just waited and started in the place where I was seeded to. The pool was a war zone! They started swimmers every 10 seconds, instead of 15 as in years past. By the end of the first lane I was stuck in a pack of 4 swimmers and basically was in a similar situation the rest of the swim. In some of the fray of attempted passing, I had my watch ripped off my wrist, but didn’t find out until I exited the pool…I wouldn’t have wanted to see the swim time anyways. 800m in 16:36 (23/30 in AG)…ouch, but 20s faster than last year.

T1: There is a long run from pool to transition…then I stumbled a bit in transition, so not my best…3:47

Bike: I’ve gotten so much stronger on the bike this year and I know this course pretty well…so felt pretty good going into this leg. I just ticked off the miles, pushing pretty hard especially on the hills, and watched the time on my PC. I alternated water and my custom Infinit blend every 7.5-8minutes as was convenient. Only one racer passed me, on a roadie with clip-ons. He was a machine, so I just let him go. Before I knew it, I was in sight of the football stadium and transition, so started spinning and preparing for the run. 18.6miles in 49:44 (22.3mph avg, 5/30 in AG)

T2: Quick and gone…1:19…need to get quicker though

Run: Within the first quarter mile, I was surprised how strong I felt…let’s call it cautious optimism. I pushed the pace harder than I have in years passed, and my legs felt a little heavy, but cardio-wise I wasn’t hurting at all. I carried my nutrition with me (1 amphipod bottle each of Infinit and water) and alternated every few minutes. Without a watch, I really couldn’t tell how fast I was going, but it felt quick. In the last mile, I was pretty certain I had put a good race together. I approached the line, but didn’t feel the need to kick it in, so just coasted across with energy to spare…probably should have pushed it harder earlier. 4miles in 25:55 (6:29/mile, 6/30 in AG)

Total time: 1:37:22 (22/305 OA, 12/30 in AG, 4+min PR)

Can’t do anything about being in a stacked AG for this one, but was very pleased with the performance. More importantly, I was pleased I was able to push hard and still have plenty of energy at the end…good sign for the 70.3.

As for my wife’s race, this was her 2nd year consecutive in this event, so she had a time to race against. She’s been working hard this season on properly biking hills and her running speed…it paid off. Even with less swim training than normal, she managed to drop her times in every leg and PR by nearly 10 minutes. A very solid time and great motivation to see the gains she’s made this year. I was very proud of her.

My taper starts officially mid-week this week…the money is in the bank at this point, so now I’m just anxious to get to Augusta and see what I can do.

Where have I been

Wow! I kind of fell off the face of the earth in regard to my blog, and for no great reason, either. I had topics I wanted to devote posts to, but was either too busy or just lost the motivation to write temporarily. So, instead of full posts of some of what I’ve been up to, I’ll just do a quick recap and maybe (hopefully) post some pictures tonight or tomorrow to further bring this up to speed.

As of my last post, I was getting ready for some R&R post Steelhead…it was wonderful. The wife and I spent our first anniversary at the Garden Grove Bed and Breakfast in Union Pier, MI (part of Harbor Country). We were just a couple miles from beach access, near New Buffalo for restaurants and some shopping, but otherwise away from it all. Highlights included an all afternoon (12-5) winery touring trip on Sunday where we hit 5 local wineries and a specialty chocolate shop, seeing the movie Away We Go and a fun little renovated old dinner theatre, climbing a huge sand dune (and then sprinting down it to run from the rain), and in room massages at the B&B. We came home refreshed and 14 bottles of Michigan wine richer…not bad.

In mid-August, we celebrated the wife’s birthday with a trip to the lake (in NE Indiana) for the weekend, where we had invited some friends we hadn’t seen in a while. The weather was mild and cloudy, but that didn’t hold us back from plenty of skiing, boating, and the like. It was great to see everyone.

The last weekend of August was Ironman Louisville. The family and I all volunteered (3 finish line catchers, 2 finish line t-shirt booth workers) and had a blast. We spent almost 11 hours at the finish line, working the first 5 or so, and then enjoying a dinner before cheering on the late finishers until midnight. It was my first time experiencing an IM finish line atmosphere and it was electric. The next day, my dad, sister and I all took the plunge and registered for IMLou 2010. I finalized my registration a couple days ago, although I don’t think reality has set in that I’m officially doing this yet.

Last weekend was, of course, Labor Day weekend and marked the beginning of college football season. Seeing as how I live in Cincy and am a huge UK fan (Kentucky), I couldn’t miss an opportunity to see the Wildcats play their season opener in the Bengals stadium. After a solid opening victory, it was off to say farewell to the lake for 2009 for the rest of the weekend. It involved lots of reading and catching up on sleep.

So now, here I am, getting ready to start my taper for my 2nd A race of the season (Augusta 70.3) come mid next week. Training has been going well, this week especially, and I have a “for fun” sprint this upcoming weekend with the wife. I’m hoping to see how my swim is coming along as I feel like I’ve made great strides in a short time, but we’ll find out Sunday. I don’t have strict goals for this C race, just have fun and not get injured mostly. I’ll try and follow up the weekend with a race report.

All caught up, the challenge from here will be to not fall behind again…and to post a picture recap to supplement this update.

Steelhead 70.3 Race Report

This past Saturday, August 1, was the 2009 Steelhead 70.3 in Benton Harbor, MI.  It was my first HIM in 2 years and my first attempt at actually racing the distance instead of merely surviving. 

Before the report, a little about the race/venue itself.  Transition is at Jean Klock Park, along the coast of Lake Michigan at the north section of Benton Harbor (BH).  It’s a pretty nice, small beach focused park that is currently expanding to add a golf course.  Hopefully development of the beach front will spur BH to improve itself because currently it could use some work.  The town itself looks pretty run-down and impoverished.  I’d assume most athletes coming in for the race stayed at nearby St. Joseph’s to the south, which seemed to be a vast improvement. 

The course, however, was pretty nice overall.  The swim is a point to point along the coast of the lake, pretty much a straight shot and the water is clear enough to not scare more timid swimmers...unless the wind kicks up, then you’ll have big waves.  The bike is a short out and back leading to a large loop in the countryside north of the city.  Some of the roads could be in better condition, but it’s a nice enough course to not bore you, and can be a bit of a challenge depending on the wind.  The run is a double loop with a couple short, but steep hills.  It offered enough variety, that having to loop the same section 2x didn’t seem to bother me.  It gives you a good idea what to expect on the 2nd loop in terms of terrain and aid station locations, of which there are plenty.  Also, the run offers a pretty good amount of shade. 

Such a long intro, now to the race report…

Swim:  My weakest leg, by far.  I felt as I could hope to be at the start, and had a pretty good position in my wave…not quite in the front row and to the outside of the pack.  However, within 50m I had fallen way back as I had to stop and drain my leaking right goggle three times already.  Finally, after the first couple minutes, which seemed like an eternity, I got them to not leak and away I went.  The rest of the swim was pretty straightforward and I had plenty of space to work with, other than catching back up to the occaisional swimmer in my wave to be welcomed with a kick or two.  Needless to say, I was frustrated with my start, but relieved to see the beach and move on.  Time: 39:22 (Goal: 40:00, –:38 total)

Me (on right) exiting the swim…I sure am angry or concentrated

T1: The transition area was long and narrow, so a pretty long run to the gear, but not too much to report here.  Time: 3:39 (Goal 4:00, –:59 total)

Bike:  This is where I really just wanted to focus on holding back.  I felt if I just settled into a comfortable “feeling” pace then I’d still hold a respectable average AND have legs for the run.  Other than my bike PC, I kept no track of time, so didn’t have an idea of how I was doing overall.  For the bike, though, I tried to pay attention to the timer only to time nutrition (alternating 2x concentrated Infinit and water, 1 large drink every 10 minutes…as well as a nutri-grain bar at the 1hr and 2hr marks).  My legs felt great and I was moving faster than I had expected.  I hit the halfway point with an avg speed of 22.6mph.  Something had to give, right?  It certainly did.  At around mile 35, after you’ve been gradually winding your way north and east, you turn onto the highway which is essentially a big straightaway back to transition.  Unfortunately, it seemed to be aligned almost directly with the wind, so the majority of the 20 miles home were rolling hills into a unrelenting headwind.  I wasn’t so worried about my speed dropping since I was well ahead of my planned speed, but it’s hard to not get frustrated and fight the wind when you’re in it that long.  As I approached T2, I was sure I used too much on the bike and figured I had trashed the run.  But either way, the bike leg still kept me ahead of my goal pace.  Time: 2:38:20 (Goal: 2:40:00, –2:39 total)

Bringing the bike back to T2 and stretching for the upcoming run.  DeSoto Coolwings (kinda the Torbjorn Sindballe strategy), are the sleeves if you’re wondering

T2:  Grabbed my fuel belt with more Infinit and a couple gels, put on my Trifuel hat, and was on my way.  Time: 2:53 (Goal: 2:00, –1:46 total)

Run:  I left T2 at little more than a shuffle, knowing I had to start slow to keep from blowing up, especially after the exertion on the bike.  Even at my shuffle, I was still moving through people on the course, which had me guessing if I was going too hard.  However, soon I get pretty settled and my pace came up a little.  I started looking for my dad, who had almost an hours head start on me.  I finally caught him at just past mile 5…he looked especially strong for his first HIM attempt.  That was motivating since with my dad and sister both racing, it’s hard not to worry a little about how there doing as your out there.  I grabbed water at every aid station, drank maybe a gulp and poured the rest onto my arm coolers or in my hat.  I was staying pretty cool.  By the time I hit the second loop, I had only walked once, at a hill just outside Whirlpool’s campus that I wanted no part of and would walk again on loop 2.  For the second loop, I added sponges to the aid station passes, wearing them sort of like shoulder pads under my sleeves.  My pace also seemed to come up a bit more.  By mile 10, I was pretty sure I had a good time going, but the fatigue was starting to set in.  I didn’t really have any kick for the finish, but I did get a little charge of energy when I rounded the corner for the home stretch and Andy Potts was there cheering us on (he said I was looking strong…it was awesome) and again a few hundred meters ahead when I saw the clock and knew I blew away my goal.  I crossed the line, and I was drained but very pleased.  Time: 1:41:09 (Goal: 1:48:30, –9:07 total)

Finish line within sight.

Total Time: 5:05:23…about a 1 hour 10 minute PR 2 years in the making.

Overall, I couldn’t have asked for a better race.  Everything seemed to come together, and yet I was so close to 5hours and see room to improve, so have another goal ahead.  I hung out at the finish with my wife and mom and waited for my dad and sister to arrive.  My dad came in sub 6:20 for his first half, almost beating my previous PR on his first attempt, and my sister came in in the 6:20’s for a nearly 25 minute improvement from her last half.  It was a great showing by all. 

Oh yeah, and Andy Potts won the race, and my wife got to congratulate him and take close-up post finish pictures…

Andy, just minutes after victory

Right now, I’m relaxing and celebrating the other event of this weekend for one more day before returning to the real world…my wife and my first anniversary.  We are relaxing in Harbor Country and it’s about the best way to spend post-race time I can think of. 

Next race, Augusta 70.3 at the end of September.

Steelhead Fast Approaching--Race Plan

Color me excited! This week has been so busy with my trying to get ahead at work in preparation for the long weekend ahead that I have hardly had time to think about being only a couple days from my first A race of 2009…until now. This afternoon, I’ll be leaving Cincinnati and making my way to Benton Harbor for Steelhead 70.3 on Saturday. Then it’s a mini-vacation with the wife to celebrate a successful first year of marriage (our anniversary is August 2nd).

With working extra hours, as well as packing, getting the new race wheel ready, gear checkout, etc…my taper has been less than ideal. It looks more like a drop off a cliff in activity then a gradual reduction. However, my workouts have been high energy and I don’t feel like my poor taper execution will mean much in the course of the race. I planned to get in a day early so I can do one last short ride Friday morning and hopefully a little swim on the course. Then, it’ll be packet pickup, bike drop off, dinner with the family (arriving Friday afternoon) and getting ready for the race, along with whatever sleep I’m capable of the night prior. For most of Friday, I’ll try and wear my Trifuel hat around so I’m noticeable to any other TFers. If you see the hat, come say hello as I’m still yet to meet another TFer face to face.

As for the race, I created a race plan before even starting my winter training to start the 2009 season when I was heavy in my season planning phase. As I saw more vast improvements that I expected, I adjusted the plan, even tweaking it as recently as Monday. I feel pretty solid with it at this point.

Here’s how things will hopefully go down:
Swim (1.2 mi)— 0:40
Bike (56 mi)— 2:40 (~21mph avg)
Run (13.1 mi)— 1:48:30 (~8:15/mi pace)
Transitions—0:06
TOTAL: 5:14:30

So, basically my overall goal is to break 5:15. Based on my training, this should be doable. However, since I haven’t done a HIM in 2 years and have never successfully completed one w/o blowing up the run, I’ll be happy with anything under 5:30.

My rationale for the 5:15 goal is as follows…
The swim should be about 40 minutes, simple as that. My training and previous race data say so…other than being more crowded in the water, I tend to swim the same pace pretty much all the time.
The bike could be faster, I’m guessing…although the real goal will be to hold back. I’ve completed some 60-70mile rides in training at around 20.5mph with traffic and no race adrenaline…so I think I’ll put a good time in here. I also have the benefit of my new Hed 90 rear to give me a mental edge. My main focus is to sit in a nice aerobically comfortable pace. Unless there’s a short, steep hill (which I’m not aware of) then I should never feel like I’m pushing it.
The run will really depend on the bike and the first 3 miles. My open ½ marathon time from April is ~1:32, so I’m expecting a drop off. However, as long as I don’t push too hard on the bike and don’t blow out of T2 like a maniac (somewhat of an issue in my transition runs) then I should be alright. I’m going to go out at 8:00/mile pace and at around mile 6-7 see how I feel to determine where to go from there.
My nutrition is planned, I have a spreadsheet detailing it in my training plan…it involves banana and gel just pre-race, 2 nutri-grain bars and 2 servings infinit nutrition (280cals/serving) on the bike, and 2 gels + 1 serving infinit on the run...pretty evenly distributed throughout the race.

My wife and mom will hopefully capture some awesome shots of my dad, sister, and myself. I’ll write up a RR as soon as I get around to it. GL to everyone else racing this weekend.

Vacation Recap and some fun facts

Well, unfortunately vacation had to come to an end.  We’re now back in Cincinnati and back into the routine.  The only nice things about returning was seeing our dog and being able to bike again.  I know I gave a basically day to day report of our vacation activities, so this post will focus on some quick thoughts about our destinations and some interesting things we saw or did along the way.

Southern Montana: Big Sky and the surrounding ranches on the highways are definitely the place to go to really get away to the backcountry.  We had no cell reception for most of our time up here, and the general pace of life seemed slow and relaxing.  I’m sure Big Sky buzzes in the winter with activity, though.

Yellowstone: I had heard going in that this would be a disappointment.  However, the only disappointment I had was with Old Faithful, which I kind of expected.  The terrain changes constantly as you travel the roads in the park…mountains, canyons, rivers, forests, lakes…it’s all there, along with the geothermal features.  Don’t go see Old Faithful to base your judgment of Yellowstone on.  Yes, the traffic is slow…but you’re there to sightsee for God’s sake…relax.

Grand Tetons:  Although much smaller than Yellowstone, the Tetons offer more hiking (at least publicized) and is more “user friendly” with better information at the ranger stations and less traffic.  Also, the mountains themselves are spectacular.  Also, the ski resorts on the south end are well developed and give ample opportunity to take it to the mountains (w/o having to hike the whole way).  There are also bike trails throughout much of the park…very nice.

Traffic:  Since the roads get torn up in the winter, they seem to do a good deal of road construction in the summer throughout the region.  This does get old when many highways are cut down to 1 lane (total).  If I lived in NW Wyoming…I’d have to bike commute, everywhere.

Behind the numbers:

Total miles hiked—36.3 miles

Total elevation covered in hikes—10,000+ ft (8,000 on long hike, seen below)

Our day hike summary

Total distinctive wild animal species identified (by us amateurs): 12, bald eagle, osprey, large crow (scientific name), moose, grizzly bear, pica, snake, pronghorn, mule deer, beaver, coyote, and elk.

Distinctive state license plates spotted: 47 + 3 canadian provinces (Alberta, BC, and Ontario)…we only missed West Virginia, New Hampshire, and Delaware

 

That’s about all I got…on more triathlon related subjects (it’s been rare of late, I know), I am just under 2 weeks out from Steelhead 70.3, my first A race of the season.  I start the official taper after tomorrow evening’s med-long run.  I’m sure in my taper boredom I’ll write up my race plan.  Also, I got a used Hed Jet 90 that should arrive tomorrow…my first race wheel.  Now I just need a Jet 60 or a trispoke for up front and a wheelcover…at some point.